David Winters
fell for a man at a Christmas masquerade party last year. The only problem? His
sister and his niece needed him so instead of pursuing anything, David ran away
and didn’t find out who he was. Now, his niece, Jenna wants to organize a toy
charity drive at a children’s hospital which leads David to reunite with
Officer Stephen Lauer. The sparks fly again and with a little Christmas
kindness maybe the two of them can make a few wishes come true… including their
own.

Excerpt:

Chapter One

Debating
whether or not he would go to the Christmas masquerade party again this year,
David stared at the message on his phone from his friend, Chad. Last year’s
party had been amazing, for one reason. A gorgeous man who’d gone by the name
of Steve. They’d hooked up, spent the night together, and then parted ways. A
regret that surfaced once again. There’d been something about the other man, though
it’d only been sex and a brief conversation, it was a lingering feeling that he
should’ve taken a chance and found out who the other man really was. If only he
hadn’t been a coward, if his life hadn’t been so complicated, maybe he’d
actually have someone to share Christmas with this year. He texted Chad back
that he’d go, maybe he’d find Steve again. He wouldn’t make the same mistake
and run away this time.

“Uncle
David,” Jenna said, sitting next to him on the sofa squeezed into the tiny
living room of his sister’s apartment, “can you help me?”

David
turned toward his eleven-year-old niece. Her hazel eyes were expectant and she
gave him that look which pretty much guaranteed he’d do whatever she planned on
asking. He saw that she had a journal in her hands with the Harry Potter
Gryffindor crest on it. Ah, he remembered getting that for her. Money was tight
for his sister—she was barely making ends meet—so David had been indulging
Jenna as of late so she wouldn’t know. “Of course, with what?”

“It’s
almost Christmas. And I want to do something to help. I heard about Toys for
Tots on TV and I wanted to do something like that. You remember how my friend,
Meredith, got sick, right?”

“Of
course I do.” Meredith had spent the last few Christmases in the hospital
fighting leukemia. After two years, she was finally in remission, thank God.
She and Jenna were good friends and inseparable. Jenna had even cut all her
long locks and donated them so Meredith could have a wig made. She hadn’t
wanted her friend to feel bad about herself and she’d said that way they could
be like twins. His niece truly had a heart of gold and David loved her more
than anything.

“Well,
at school today she said it’s really hard for parents to get gifts because
they’re so busy taking care of their sick kids in the hospital. And sometimes
they can’t afford new toys. I thought we could organize a toy drive this year.
Meredith wants to help too. We could take all the toys to the hospital and give
them out on Christmas Eve next week. I know Mom can arrange stuff. I want to
tell her as soon as she gets home.” She showed him the plans she had written.
Then gave him a bright smile. “What do you think?”

David
hugged her tightly and kissed the top of her head, smoothing down her curly
brown hair. “I think we’d better get started.”

She
let out a cry of excitement and hugged him back. “Thank you, Uncle David!”

§
§ §

David
took Jenna to Target and they bought all the supplies they’d need to make
flyers for the toy drive. Jenna picked out Christmas stickers, green and red
markers, and a few other odds and ends. They went back home and while David
started dinner, Jenna set up their workstation at the old oak kitchen table.
While the chicken was cooking, he helped Jenna design the flyers.

Awhile
later a key clicked in the lock and Jenna jumped up as soon as Caitlyn walked
through the door. She hugged her mom. “Hi, Mom!”

“How
was work, Caty?” David asked her as she seemed tired.

Caitlyn
ran a hand through her messy ponytail. “Long. I swear I ran back and forth at
least twenty times for a new patient.”

David’s
sister, Caitlyn, was a nurse at the hospital. She worked the day shift and
David watched Jenna after school until she got home. He walked over and gave
his sister a kiss on the forehead. For a second, the happy mask she always wore
in front of Jenna slipped. Right then, David really hated her ex-husband,
Bruce. Even after a year, his sister was still suffering, still lost. Her
bastard of an ex had cheated and then left Caitlyn and Jenna just before Christmas
last year. No matter how much he helped Jenna with her homework, made her
dinner, took her to dance class, and softball, Caitlyn still seemed depressed
and was struggling. He knew she appreciated everything he did. He just wished
he could do more. He was so worried about her. They only lived about ten
minutes from his apartment but he didn’t see much of it, between work and
spending time here, keeping an eye on his family and making sure they got
through this.

Before
he could say anything, Jenna told Caitlyn, “Mom, I’ve got a great idea.”

“What’s
that, honey?” Caitlyn asked as Jenna went with her to the kitchen. She toed off
her shoes with a heavy sigh and smiled at David as he popped her dinner in the
microwave. “Thanks, Davy.” David shook his head. He disliked his nickname as
much as Caitlyn did hers, yet they both fondly used them. No one else was
allowed to though.

Jenna
excitedly told her mom about the toy drive. “And look!” She dashed to the table
and grabbed a flyer that they had made to hand out. David figured he could
leave some at work, maybe drop by the police and fire stations, and a little
social media wouldn’t hurt either. He could probably even run something in the
paper if he got the okay from his executive editor. He was certain she would be
willing. It would be a feel-good piece; those always did well. Plus, it was
nice to have stories that showed the goodness still in the world, despite how
depressing it sometimes seemed.

“Me
and Uncle David made these.”

Caitlyn
took the flyer. “Wow, this is incredible, Jen.” She seemed as proud of her
daughter for thinking of it as David was. “I’ll talk with some of the doctors
and the head of pediatrics tomorrow, see what we need to do to make this
happen, okay?”

“You’re
the best, Mom!” Jenna hugged her again.

Caitlyn
gave David a fond look, her hazel eyes so much like his own, except faded,
making her appear older than she was. Only three years older than him at
thirty-five, she really was too young to be so worn out. “I think that goes to
Uncle David for helping you with this.”

“Nah.”
David shook his head. “Jenna did all the planning. I’m just the assistant.”

Caitlyn
laughed. “Well now you have two of us, Jen. What’s the next step?”

“I’ve
got work to do, sweetie.” He hugged her. “I’m going to head home and let you
and Mom have some fun together, okay?”

“Okay.
I love you, Uncle David.”

“Love
you too.” David smiled as Jenna ran off to start the movie then he embraced his
sister. “And you. Have a good night. Call if you need anything, Caty.”

“I
will, Davy.” Caitlyn gently pushed him away then said quietly, “Go on, we’ll be
fine. I know you worry but it’s okay. Jenna just reminded me of something.”

“What’s
that?”

Caitlyn’s
face lit up. “That I may still be hurting, but I’ve got a good life. I’ve got a
beautiful little girl and you. And it’s almost Christmas. I’m done being sad.
You want to help me decorate and have some fun this weekend? We could go out,
maybe drinks.”

“Count
me in.” David found his keys and left the apartment after more good-byes. It
was chilly outside, a light snow falling. He was glad he’d brought his car.
Sometimes he stayed late and while the neighborhood was decent, David had seen
one too many crime shows to walk alone in the dark. No, he’d much rather crank
up the heat in his car and listen to loud classic rock as he made the short
trip home.

He
realized that the party Chad had invited him to was this weekend and cursed.
Caitlyn hadn’t asked him to do anything in a long time—he couldn’t cancel on
her now. Then he had an idea. Maybe she’d go with him. She wanted to do
something fun and it would be a good time. A way to forget everything for a
while. And Jenna could sleepover at Meredith’s. It could all be worked out if
he just got his sister to agree to it. He went into his apartment, showered,
slipped on sleep pants, and then tumbled into bed with a hopeful smile. Maybe
he’d get a second chance with Steve, that’s all he really wanted this
Christmas.

Anna
Lee graduated from the University of California Riverside with a Bachelor’s
Degree in Creative Writing. Living with a disability, she has overcome many
challenges and puts her passion for life and love into her writing. She lives
with her family and dogs and enjoys writing late into the night. When she isn’t
writing, Anna enjoys spending time with her nieces and nephew or chatting with
her friends about her favorite books and TV shows.

You
can contact Anna at her website: www.storiesbyannalee.com. Or you can tweet
her.@Annalee59

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